The Great War began on the 28th of July, 1914, and ended on the 11th of November, 1918, lasting 4 years, 3 months, and 2 weeks. It was considered to be ‘the war to end all wars’, and caused mass devastation and destruction. Millions upon millions of soldiers died, and millions more were injured or missing. The war was caused by four major long-term reasons: militarism; alliances; imperialism; and nationalism. The war was triggered by the murder of the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie, duchess of Hohenburg, in Bosnia. The alliances, the ‘Triple Entente’, which included Britain, France, and Russia, and the ‘Triple Alliance’, which included Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy, fought against each other.
The first reason why the Great War began was nationalism. Nationalism is the belief that one’s country is superior to all others. It is a form of patriotism and loyalty. Nationalists believe their country’s agendas are more important than other countries’. Europe in the early 20th century was rife with nationalism. Many Europeans, especially those of the ‘Great Powers’, blindly believed their country was the best in all military, economic, and cultural aspects. These beliefs were further established by the press, which published nationalistic propaganda and rumours. Members of the governments and royal families did not attempt to extinguish these beliefs, and at times, even added fuel to the fire by making remarks that encouraged these views. Nationalism was problematic as it made many impressionable people believe that their countries were always correct, reasonable, and fair, and convinced them that that their various countries would win any war they were involved in. Nationalistic views also made people believe that rival countries were unfair, uncivilised, and blameworthy, and encouraged racism and hate.
One such important example of nationalism in Europe is the Balkan crises and war. The Austro-Hungary Empire and Russia fought over control of the Balkans, which included ethnic groups such as the Serbs, Bulgarians, Romanians etc. Serbia was very nationalistic and wanted the Balkans as a unified state of slavs. As most Russians were mainly of slavic descent, Serbia joined Russia’s side. Austria-Hungary believed that a unified Balkan Peninsula could lead to a rebellion, so it wanted to prevent it from happening under any circumstance. Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina which were the countries Serbia wanted to expand into. Many young Serbs began to form nationalistic groups such as the ‘Black Hand’. These groups were anti-Austria-Hungary and wanted them to leave the Balkans. They wanted a unification of the Balkans to form a ‘Greater Serbia’. These nationalistic views led to the murder of the Austro-Hungarian Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo, Bosnia, in 1914, and so, the First World War.
The second reason why the Great war began was imperialism. Imperialism is the system in which a strong country colonises and controls smaller, weaker countries to form an empire. The ‘mother country’ is then allowed to take valuable resources like gold, silver, cotton, spices, timber, rubber, rice, labour etc. from their colonies. Before the Great War, the strongest imperial power was the British empire. It had colonies such as India, Canada, Sri Lanka, Australia, and New Zealand. Europeans powers such as France, Austria-Hungary, Germany, Russia, and Spain also had empires. Germany and Italy, having recently been unified, had smaller empires than they wanted. Although Otto van Bismarck did not believe in building an empire, many other Germans did. Groups like the Colonial League were formed to push for German colonial expansion. The Kaiser and his advisors focussed on colonising in Africa. They annexed Togoland, the Cameroons, Namibia, and Tanzania, in the 1880s. This led to tension between Germany, and Britain and France.
Britain wanted to build a railway from ‘Cairo to the Cape’, and this could not be done while Germany held their colonies. France wanted to seize Morocco, but the German Kaiser disturbed the French attempts by making a speech supporting Moroccan independence. This angered and upset the French government. This was the first Moroccan crises. The second Moroccan crisis occurred when the German ship, the Panther, unexpectedly arrived at the Moroccan port of Agadir, during an anti-French rebellion. This outraged the French government and almost led to a war between France and Germany. These incidents were Germans attempts to divide Britain and France, but instead they reinforced British and French ties. Imperialism and empire-building was a large factor of tension in Europe, as it forced Europeans powers to compete to seize colonies.
The third reason why the Great War began were the alliances. As countries began to feel more insecure, they formed alliances with other countries to support them in case of a war or dispute. Britain, France, and Russia came together to form the Triple Entente, while Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy made up the Triple Alliance. The alliances hoped that this would deter countries from declaring war, as they would be forced to fight three countries instead of one. The downside to this was that if any country did declare war, all of Europe would be at war.
In 1871, after many successful military ventures, the Prussian Minister President and Foreign Minister, Otto Van Bismarck, united small principalities to form Germany. But, he was afraid that the close-by countries, especially France and Austria-Hungary, would disunite them. He believed that to even the balance of power in Europe, it was necessary to form alliances and foreign policies. He knew Germany could not pursue alliances with Britain and France as Britain was attempting isolation from Europe, and France was still resentful over a province Germany took over during the Franco-Prussian War, known as Alsace-Lorraine. Thus, he attempted to form alliances with Austria-Hungary and Russia. In 1873, the Three Emperors’ League was formed, which made them allies. In 1878, Russia withdrew, leading Germany and Austria-Hungary to form the Dual Alliance. The Dual Alliance stated that Germany and Austria-Hungary would support each other if Russia declared war on either of them, or supported an ally that had. It also pledged neutrality in case one of them was declared war on by another European country. In 1881, Italy joined the Dual Alliance to form the Triple Alliance. The triple alliance meant that they would aid each other in case France declared war on them, or if they were at war with two or more countries. Bismarck also formed a “reinsurance treaty” with Russia, that stated that both countries would stay neutral if one of them was at war with a third country, and that Russia did not have to support Germany in a war with France. Bismarck’s successors allowed this policy and many others to fall apart, which is now considered to have been a massive mistake.
Kaiser Wilhelm II’s militarism also led Britain, France, and Russia into reinforcing their alliance as the Triple entente. In the Entente Cordiale of 1904, meaning ‘friendly agreement’, Britain and France promised to aid one another in the case of a war. In the Anglo-Russian entente of 1907, Britain made a similar pledge with Russia. In 1907, the Entente Cordiale and the Anglo-Russian Entente was joined to form an agreement between Britain, France, and Russia. After tensions arose in Europe, post the death of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, Germany pledged their full support to Austria-Hungary, no matter what they chose to do. This pledge has since been known as the ‘blank cheque’. Historians believe that Germany’s pledge was either an attempt to incite war across Europe, or to confine the war to the Balkans.
The fourth reason why the Great War began was militarism. Militarism is the belief that military forces and objectives should be given high importance by the government to further national agendas. A German historian who fought in the Great War, Alfred Vagts, described militarism as the “domination of the military man over the civilian, an undue preponderance of military demands, an emphasis on military considerations.” Militarism was a contributing factor to the Great War because it led to competitive ‘arms races’ amongst countries, and created an environment for violence. As countries had to justify their military expenditure and were tempted to use their new weapons, militarism meant that many European countries were choosing violence and war over peaceful discussions. Between 1870 and 1914, the military forces of both Germany and France doubled. The most significant display of militarism leading up to the Great War was the Anglo-German Naval Race. Britain believed their navy was crucial to maintaining their position as the world’s most powerful nation, as their navy protected their colonies, trade routes, and Great Britain, which is surrounded by the sea. The British economy depended on the ability to trade in raw materials from its colonies and ship the finished goods to the rest of the world. In the 20th century, Britons also were getting 58% of their calories from imported food, which meant that without access to the sea, there would be food shortages. Thus, Britain took great care to hold its navy to the ‘two-power’ standard, which stated that Britain’s navy should be as big as the next two biggest navies combined. Until 1904, those two navies were France and Russia.
In 1890, an extremely important book about naval strategy, ‘The Influence of Sea Power upon History’, was published by the American naval historian Alfred Thayer Mahan. He theorised that control of the seas was the key to nations thriving and ruling other nations, and that the most efficient way to gain this was through large naval battles. The book had a huge impact on German and British thinking, and one copy of the book was put in every German ship. Kaiser Wilhelm II, influenced by the book, pursued Reichstag funding to carry out Mahan’s ideas in Germany. In 1897, in his first meeting with Kaiser Wilhelm II, State Secretary of the Imperial Naval Office, Admiral Tirpitz suggested that for Germany to become an important European power, it would have to challenge Britain’s navy. Their strategy was to build a navy that would be two thirds the size of the British navy, so that if Britain tried to attack it, it would be large enough to weaken the British navy. And so, Germany and Britain began to compete to build the bigger navy.
In Germany, there was fear that Britain was planning an attack, while in Britain there was fear that Germany was planning to outbuild Britain’s navy. Soon, Britain removed Russia from its ‘two-power’ standard and added Germany instead. In 1906, Britain introduced their new ‘Dreadnought’ a new league of ship that was very large and heavily gunned, which made many other ships pointless and outdated. Although Germany’s role in the naval race was due to the government and Kaiser’s agendas, Britain’s was pushed by the press and public opinion. In 1884, an influential newspaperman W.T. Stead published articles that criticised Britain’s army, especially its navy. Pressure groups such as the British Navy League began to campaign for a better navy, and patriotic and nationalistic slogans like “we want eight and we won’t wait” were created to push the British government. Britain set up new naval bases in northern Scotland for the new ships, while Germany opened up the Kiel canal so that their new dreadnoughts could pass through easily. By 1914, European military expenditure had multiplied three-fold, going from 94 million pounds in 1870 to 398 million pounds in 1914. German military expenditure went up 73%, Russia’s went up 30%, Britain’s went up 13%, and France’s went up 10%. Germany also enlisted 170,000 new soldiers in their army between 1913-1914. By the start of the Great War, Britain had 45 dreadnoughts while Germany had 26. The Anglo-German Naval race destroyed the relationship between Britain and Germany and reaffirmed the belief that a war was impending. By 1914, the European powers were ready for war.
The final reason the Great War began was the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie. On the 28th of June, 1914, the Archduke and Duchess were fatally shot in Sarajevo, by Serbian nationalist Gavrilo Princip. He was a part of a group formed to murder the Archduke, and the Blank Hand society. They hoped the assassination would lead Austria-Hungary to relinquish the South Slav states so they could be unified to form Yugoslavia. At the time, Austria-Hungary was searching for an opportunity to suppress pan-slavic views. The assassination presented them the perfect opportunity. They sent an intentionally unreasonable ultimatum to the Kingdom of Serbia, expecting it to be rejected, which it partially was. Supported by Germany’s blank cheque, they declared war on Serbia. Due to the European alliances, this forced all the Europeans powers to be dragged into a war over the Balkans. Although this incident triggered the war, Europe tensions in the early 1900s have been referred to as a ‘powder keg’ ready to explode.
Although the main long-term reasons were all factors in the eruption of the first World War, the most significant reason was the Alliances. Although they gave many European powers a sense of security, they also meant that the smallest incident could lead to a war between all of Europe. They created tension as they divided Europe and encouraged racism. The common factor between the countries in the Triple Alliance were their anti-french and anti-russian views. The formation of the Triple Entente also made the Triple Alliance feel cornered and trapped. The alliances forced countries to pick sides, and acknowledge beliefs that would lead to tension. They broke many old ties in Europe and destroyed the relationships between many of the powers. The Alliance between Germany and Austria-Hungary also directly led to the Great War, as Austria-Hungary only declared war on Serbia after it was given Germny’s unconditional support. Although the backing of other countries made many European powers safer, it forced many to fight in a war they did not believe in.
Q2. Why did men choose to fight in the Great War?
‘Source A’ was published to encourage British men to fight in the Great War. It was published in 1915 because, at the time, there was a shortage of soldiers in the British army. In 1914, when Britain declared war on Germany, more than a million men enlisted in the British army, but after experiencing the brutality of war, far less men were prepared to. The government also realised that this style of modern warfare was exhausting their army more than they had anticipated and that they would need far more soldiers. The last war in Europe, that was similar to the Great War, had been the Crimean War in 1953. Thus, the generation of men that enlisted in 1914 had had little exposure to the true brutality of war. Over time, fighting for one’s ‘king and country’ had become a romantic notion and many men were influenced by the idea of glory and honour into enlisting in the army. In 1915, having experienced the hardship of war on both soldiers and citizens, many men were reluctant to enlist. Compulsory enlisting or conscription had not been legalised yet, so the government used propaganda to promote enlisting instead. The government began to release recruitment posters like ‘Source A’ to foster feelings of patriotism and fear in hesitant men, to serve as motivation to enlist in the army.
‘Pals Battalions’ were military units used to motivate men to join the army. The British government believed that men were more likely to enlist in the army if their friends and family had. Thus, they formed battalions where siblings, colleagues, relatives, and friends would be enlisted together. Nearby towns would compete to see which town had the largest battalion, signifying which was the most patriotic. Unfortunately, there were serious repercussions to the ‘Pals Battalions’. Soldiers in these battalions would be forced to watch their friends and family die before them. ‘Pals Battalions’ like the Leeds Pals, Accrington pals, Grimsby Chums, and Sheffield City Battalion, lost half or more of their soldiers, and left their communities missing an entire generation of young men.
‘Conscientious objectors’ or the derogatory ‘conchies’ were conscripted men that refused to go to war due to their religious or political views, believing that any form of war was wrong.
Q3. Trench Warfare
I had always thought fighting for one’s king and country stood for bravery, courage and honour. The day I enlisted in the army, I believed I had finally gone from boy to man. I never would have believed I came back as less than half the man I used to be. At the time, my only fear was death or, more accurately, what came after death. I was afraid that my time as a soldier would force me down to the fiery pits of hell. I never knew that hell was a place on earth, or I would not have signed up to go right into the thick of it.
We lived the same day over and over; the same boring monotonous routine everyday. Contrary to what many believe, we did not spend most of our days fighting. In truth, we were suffocating in boredom. We collected food, cooked, cleaned our weapons, fixed the trenches, wrote letters, and did our guard duty. At 5.30am, we rationed rum. At 6am, we stood-down for 30 minutes after the sun rose. We then had breakfast; tried to clean the trenches, weapons, and ourselves the best we could; had dinner; slept or tried to pass the time; had tea; stood-to for 30 minutes before dusk; stood-down for 30 minutes after dusk; and then worked for the rest of the night.
It was very difficult to clean the trenches. They were infested with rats the size of cats (which produced almost 900 young every year) and filled with water. The water gave many of us trench foot. Your feet would swell up and be covered in sores. Some people’s feet even rotted away. It was horrific. We had to keep our gas masks, weapons, ammunition, boots, helmets, shaving kits, water bottles and shovels safe and clean in these impossible conditions. The food was also less than satisfactory. We ate stew, bread and hard biscuits. Sometimes we were treated to bacon, cheese, and jam, but it wasn’t too often. But the water was nauseating. It smelled rank, and tasted of chlorine. The luckier ones out of us, received parcels filled with chocolate, tinned food, and tobacco from their families. We mainly ate Maconchie’s meat stew or bully beef and our stomachs were upset most of the time. All the letters we wrote had to be censored, to make sure we didn’t reveal any secrets or ruin ‘morale’. We overheated through the summers, and froze through the winters. Many of us had lice, ulcers, boils, pneumonia, dysentery or bronchitis. We used to sit together and chat, helping each other pick the lice from our bodies.
The trenches ran across from Belgium, through France, to Switzerland. Between us and the Germans was ‘no man’s land.’ It was muddy and about 50-200 metres wide, but insured death if you tried to cross it. Millions of miles of barbed wire ran across it, to slow down the Germans. If they tried to run across ‘no man’s land,’ we fired machine guns that took many of them down rapidly. The front, that was right next to ‘no man’s land,’ was noisy and dangerous, and where all the fighting soldiers were. We stood on fire steps and used our periscopes to look over the top without being shot. Soldiers who had finished their round at the front, or were about to go there, stayed in the reserve trenches. The dugouts at the back walls were where our commanders received orders. We used to dread being called up to the front because we knew that over there, death was a very real possibility. Sometimes, our commanders would ring the gas bell to tell us to wear our gas masks and follow the procedure. When neither side could finally not move any further, we reached a stalemate. Although it was comforting to know that we didn’t have to fight for some time, it also meant that the government and commanders begin to get creative in ways that were more terrifying than we had experienced before.
The trench still haunts me to this day. It broke men down until they were mere, hollow shells of the men they used to be. The constant bombings, gunfire and fear gave many of the surviving soldiers ‘shell shock.’ I saw many men suffer it. Some screamed for hours upon hours, while others barely blinked. The comfort of knowing the trenches drove other men to the brink of insanity, kept me sane. Although, I used to wish I would lose my senses too. I hoped that when, and if I died, I would not know. When I enlisted, I thought I would survive… but after a while, one can’t help but to remember death is inevitable. Especially when you spend months watching your friends, commanders, and fellow soldiers being blown to bits, or shot, or trampled. We realised fairly quickly that nobody was going back. Most of us would end up either dead, missing or badly injured. Once you accept that, life in the trenches becomes much easier. You just do what you’re told and hope for the best. There is no escaping. You either die by the hand of the trenches, the German soldiers, or a firing squad. We found peace in choosing to die an honourable death. I was fortunate, or unfortunate, to have been able to not carry through with that choice. But I died by the hands of my memories… the pictures and screams that can never be erased, that haunt me every minute of every day. There is never any escaping.
Q4. Soldiers of the empire
Colonies are places that have been inhabited by settlers, and are ruled by foreign governments from their respective countries.
Australia sent 416,809 soldiers to fight in the war, and New Zealand sent 130,000 soldiers.
India sent 1.4 million soldiers to fight in the war.
Britain had many colonies fighting with them in the Great War. Britain convinced soldiers from its colonies to enlist in the war through recruitment posters. Countries like India, Canada, the West Indies, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa were sent recruitment posters that promised ‘an easy life’, ‘good pay’ and ‘very little danger’ which motivated them to enlist. Imperialistic propaganda was also distributed that attempted to invoke loyalty and patriotism in the colonies with slogans such as ‘helped by the young lions, the old lion defies his foes’. Many soldiers thought of their respective countries and Britain as one, and fought ‘for king and country’. Examples of this are the quotes from a wounded Sikh soldier saying, ‘It is our first duty to show loyalty to the British Government’ and the Minister of Canada saying, ‘When Britain is at war, Canada is at war- there is no difference at all.’
Q5. How did WW1 affect ordinary people?
The Great War affected millions of British lives. Aside from the soldiers, airmen, and sailors that were directly influenced by the war, many ordinary people’s lives were also disrupted. Britain was affected by the Zeppelin raids, the changing role of women, the implementation of DORA, the higher taxation, and the massive loss of life.
The first way in which Britain was affected were the Zeppelin raids that took place between 1915 and 1917. During the war, the Germans bombed British cities and towns using Zeppelins, named after the inventor that created them. They were long, hollow, balloon-like airships that were filled with hydrogen gas. The crews would sit in small compartments at the bottoms of the airships, and drop bombs on unsuspecting towns and cities. They usually flew on dark, calm nights as the ships were easier to guide, and less noticeable. The Germans thought that these sudden bombings would create chaos and disorder in the affected places. In defence, the British government distributed posters that described how to take shelter from the bombings, and how to tell the difference between British and German airships. This benefitted the British greatly in the second world war, as people applied these lessons during the German’s aerial attacks. Although the bombings terrified the people and made it difficult for them to sleep at night, they were not very effective and did not cause much destruction.
The second way in which Britain was affected was how the role of women changed during the war. Before the Great War, women did not have the right to vote and were not employed in jobs such as being police officers, car mechanics, road menders, and bus drivers. During the war, with most of the men away fighting, women had to fill in roles that traditionally men took on. For the first time, they worked in weapons factories, shipyards, with the police force, ambulance service, or even as steel makers or chimney sweeps. The suffragettes even stopped their campaign to aid in the war effort. After the war, believing women had done their part, more and more people stood with the suffragettes’ campaign for women’s suffrage. Many politicians were also not keen on having the suffragettes begin their terroristic campaign again, so, with the support of the people, all land-owning women over the age of 30 were granted the right to vote.
The third way in which Britain was affected was DORA. On the 8th of August, 1914, four days after Britain entered the Great War, Britain introduced a new law known as DORA or the ‘Defence of the Realm Act’. It was passed to stop invasion and keep spirits up in Britain. It gave the government the ability to do anything they believed was necessary to win the war. It allowed the government to do things like: imprison people without trial; take over railways, shipyards and mines; prevent criticism from being published; and even water down beer. It essentially made the British government autocratic.
The fourth way in which Britain was affected was the higher taxation. During the war, the British government loaned millions from the USA to fund the war. This led to heavier taxation on the people, so that the government could repay their debts. Certain goods were also in short supply, but high demand, so they became more expensive.
The final way in which Britain was affected by the war was the devastating loss of life. Many cities and towns lost their entire communities of young men, and many women were left widowed by their husbands or fiancées. Millions of people lost relatives, friends, workmates, and neighbours.
Many of the men that returned from war also came back injured, or suffering from shell shock.
The most significant way that Britain was affected was the change in the role of women. The Zeppelin Raids, DORA, and high taxation only affected the lives of people in Britain in the short-term and did not have a lasting effect on the British people. Although, the massive loss of life changed and influenced the British population for years to come, it was not as revolutionary as the effect the war had on the perception of women. The war allowed women the space and time to prove themselves as efficient, intelligent and more than just housewives. It led to them being granted a right to vote, and paved the way for Britain to reach equal rights for men and women. It gave women the right to an opinion, the right to express it, and the respect that allowed it to be valid.
Q6. How did Poppy Day start?
A) In 1917, the Russian people rebelled against their government and stopped fighting against the Germans. The Germans then directed their entire army, navy, and air force toward the French and British. But, by that point, the USA had entered the war to fight alongside the British and French, after German submarines sunk American ships. The Germans attempted to defeat the British and French using their full efforts to win the war, before the American soldiers reached, but failed. The German forces then began to retreat. Simultaneously, in Germany, citizens began to rebel and there were riots in the streets. The countries surrounding Germany also began to surrender. Finally, the German kaiser fled to the Netherlands, and the replacement governance called for an armistice. At 11am on 11th November, 1918, the Great War ended.
B) During the Great War, an area the size of Wales was damaged by the fighting. Poppy seeds require sunlight to grow, so buried seeds can stay dormant for upto 80 years without blooming. Thus, in the first World War as fighting destroyed the land, many poppy seeds were brought to the surface and began to bloom. The resilience of the Poppy made it a symbol of life and hope for millions of soldiers, who watched them grow in the trenches.
C) The Great War caused the deaths of approximately 40 million civilians and military personnel (15-19 million civilians and around 23 million military personnel). The death tolls of the involved countries are: 1,774,000 Germans; 1,700,000 Russians; 1,375,000 Frenchmen; 1,200,000 Austro-Hungarians; 662,000 British; 650,000 Italians; 336,000 Romanians; 325,000 Turkish; 117,000 Americans; 87,000 Bulgarians; 58,000 Australians; 56,000 Canadians; 45,000 Serbians; 14,000 Belgians; 7,200 Portuguese; 6,900 South Africans; 5,000 Greeks; 1,200 Cubans, Haitians, and West Indians; 540 Chinese; and 300 Japanese.
Q7. What did countries do to avoid more war?
A) The Treaty of Versailles, published in June 1919, forced Germany to agree to many conditions in order to prevent invasion. The treaty stated that Germany would have to compensate all the countries involved in the Great War, through money (approximated at 6,600 million pounds) and goods, and take responsibility for starting the war. It also stated that Germany would not be allowed to have an air force or submarines, but could have a small army and navy. German soldiers would also not be permitted to travel to or close to France. The treaty also required Germany to turn over its colonies to France and Britain, and divided the losing countries to form new smaller countries that ruled themselves. It was also decided that the League of Nations would be formed, to allow the winning countries to discuss their issues instead of going to war.
B) The League of Nations was formed to allow the winning countries to peacefully resolve issues, instead of going to war. It attempted to prevent war was by excluding any countries that declared war from trade until the shortage of goods would force them to stop fighting.
C) If I were a German Civilian in 1919, I would have been enraged over the Treaty of Versailles. I would have been distressed over the financial devastation in Germany and the state of its economy, due to to the fact that Germany was forced to pay for the war, and would have been upset over the effect it had on German people’s lives. I also would have felt humiliated that Germany had to take responsibility for starting the war, and would have been upset over the influence it had on people’s perception of Germans. I would have been nervous to be German in 1919, as many foreign people were upset and angry at the Germans for the war, and without an air force and a substantial army or navy, I would have been nervous in case of another war or dispute. I, finally, would have been very angry at the ‘Big Three’ for the pain they were causing the German population, by taking the government’s money, armies, and colonies, and leaving Germany struggling to survive.
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